Learn how to get the most out of Google Workspace apps with this guide. I show you some of its most useful functions. In this guide I want to offer you the best tips to get the most out of Google Workspace , Google’s productivity suite. To do this, I have compiled a series of very useful functions that will help you organize, write documents easily, send emails via Gmail more quickly and, ultimately, make better use of the capabilities of Google apps.
It is important to mention that all of these tips are aimed at users in general , not just those who use a Google business account. One of the interesting things about this suite is that its tools are practically identical in personal and professional accounts.
So with the Google Workspace tricks that I explain here you will be able to get the most out of this platform, even with your personal Gmail account. Do not miss it!
Index of contents
- Take notes as you edit your documents
- Create tasks from your Gmail messages
- Activate Gmail offline mode
- Go to pageless mode in Google Docs
- Create a website hosted on Google Drive
- Insert smart chips with a single key
- Embed videos and directions from YouTube and Google Maps
Take notes as you edit your documents
The sidebar that you have in Google applications is really useful. Thanks to it, you have access to a reduced version of other tools, such as Google Keep. This allows you to take notes as you edit a file.
Simply tap the Google Keep icon, add a new note, and start writing. It’s very interesting to note that if you do this from a Google Doc, spreadsheet, or presentation, the file will be attached to the note . In this way, your notes will be linked to the file, both in the side view and in the Keep web and mobile application.
Create tasks from your Gmail messages
I already explained this trick to you in greater depth in the guide on how to create a task from a Gmail email . I recommend taking a look at this publication to learn more about the procedure.
The concept is simple: many of the emails are tasks that you must complete, and that’s why Gmail makes it easy to add them to Google Tasks . From there, the message is attached to the task, for which a due date can be set. By the way, your tasks will also appear in Google Calendar.
Activate Gmail offline mode
If you use the Chrome browser, you will be able to activate Gmail offline to check your email even if you are not connected to the Internet . Personally, I have tested it with other Chromium browsers, such as Edge or Brave, and this mode also works perfectly.
You just have to go to Gmail settings and click on the Offline tab . There, activate the function and indicate that you want to keep emails from the last 30 days (change this value according to your preferences) and download the attachments. Save your changes and wait for Gmail to reload.
From that moment on, Gmail will synchronize your emails so you can open them without having an active connection . It will even allow you to compose messages and send them when the device connects to the Internet. You must create a bookmark in the browser to access email offline, because without Internet the option of entering gmail.com in the address bar is not valid.
Go to pageless mode in Google Docs
Google Docs has been evolving a lot for some time now. Now, it is possible to remove page formatting in documents and get a view similar to Notion . Therefore, with this function we obtain a kind of totally infinite blank space on which to write without thinking about page breaks.
All you have to do to get this view is the following:
- Open Google Docs.
- Click on File.
- Click Page Setup.
- In the pop-up window, select No Pages.
- If you want this to be the default view, click Choose as default.
Obviously, when you export a document to Word or PDF format, the pages are recovered and the content is adjusted automatically.
Create a website hosted on Google Drive
Google Sites is a tool that allows you to design simple websites and host them on Google Drive. Yes, you will be able to use Google’s hosting service to publish a page on the Internet. How can you do it?
Although it is focused on companies , this application is available to all users. Simply access sites.google.com and click on Blank site . It is also interesting to take advantage of some of the templates that the service itself offers.
Like any other Google Doc, any changes you make will automatically be stored in Drive. Once you have your site ready, simply press Publish to launch it to the world. This tool even allows you to link the website with a custom domain, to give it a more professional touch.
Insert smart chips with a single key
The at sign (@) in Google Docs has a lot of power. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Docs or Sheets . Typing this symbol will take you to a drop-down menu that allows you to insert smart chips into your documents.
For example, in Google Sheets you will be able to tag a user in a cell , add a star rating, or create a dropdown. It also allows you to attach files from Drive.
In Documents, this function has more specific tools, designed for writing text. For example, you can create a table to track a project or a draft email that you can then send via Gmail.
Embed videos and directions from YouTube and Google Maps
The integration of Workspace with other Google services is great. This allows you, among other things, to convert YouTube and Google Maps links into smart chips with the push of a button.
As seen in the image above, you just have to paste the link and then press the tab key . This will make the URL disappear and display a more appropriately designed chip. When you place the cursor over these chips, a preview of the inserted video or map appears.
These are some tricks to get the most out of Google Workspace. But surely you know many more. Tell us what your favorite features are in the comments. We read you!